applejackcrunch

Use your own body to visualize the muscles. Easiest way would be to get a list and point them out on your body (or someone willing to help, but your body would be better because it'll be there during the test ) until you're able to master as much as you can. Repetition is the best way to learn! I know it'll probably be boring but have someone quiz you and make sure you get it right. Edit: Forgot about the neurons and spinal cord! That's pretty easy... your book should have diagrams of the neurons- cover the terms up with little scraps of post-it notes and quiz yourself on that. Or find a diagram online! There are tons that are for that purpose. As for the spinal cord, you'll probably find it easiest to study that like the muscles, at least for the sections the spinal cord branches off to. Other than that, diagrams without labels!

I kept my A&P text from my first AAS, and luckily I can use it this fall for my nursing pre-req advanced A&P. I bought that, used, for $30 three years ago- renting it would have been about $50 more this year. I bought a "like new" micro book for $5. Mint condition (except now that I've spilled water on it... oops...) and not a single mark in it. I bought a physiology text book two years ago just for funsies- $10- and you can be sure that I will be referencing that gold mine in class this fall. My developmental psych text was $5 for a used copy with minimal markings. Seriously... unless your school makes you buy their special editions, do not buy full priced texts. If you're worried about changes in editions, get a really cheap used copy of the last edition and find a decently priced rental for the new, especially if you're one who likes to highlight and write notes on pages. Keep those textbooks!!! Searching on the internet is easy but there is a lot of variety in the information you can find. Using your texts to find the answers to your questions should be just as easy, if not better, because you've already gone over the textbook for class, right? And you'll have an answer you can trust.

I'm honestly really surprised that my school hasn't made their acute-care CNA course a pre-req for nursing too. I'm sure it's coming, might end up taking that as an extra elective if I can swing it with financial aid.

I know this isn't really on topic now that the question has been answered but I know sometimes this diagnostic test vs screening question pops up (not necessarily here but definitely in patient questions) and hey, I have this handy-dandy flowchart from coding clinicals last year that helped me understand the difference. Spreading the knowledge, etc. :) Rule of thumb is that a diagnostic test is done for someone with symptoms or history of a certain disease- like colon cancer. A patient will have diagnostic colonoscopies if they are having symptoms or if they've had colon cancer. Screening is used to rule out a diagnosis in someone who is in a certain population or assess for an abnormality that may be present in certain populations- for example, people over the age of 50 for colonoscopies. It's recommended every ... ten years? Correct me if I'm wrong, please. But in someone who has no symptoms and no previous diagnosis of abnormal findings in colonoscopies it would be a simple screening. I also found a really good description of what a screening is on americanpregnancy.org that fits with this topic.

My school requires CNA certification as an admission requirement to start the core nursing courses. Personally I think it's a good idea to do the CNA course before starting core courses even if it's not required to A) earn some extra cash for those expensive textbooks and B) get some experience in patient care- being comfortable in that setting is important and a some of us really need that extra boost of experience before clinicals. A&P and college algebra will probably take up about 4 hours of studying (practice problems, textbook readings, etc) per week per class, not including time for actual homework- unless your algebra text is like mine was and was basically just practice over and over and over again. Your schedule definitely looks manageable, but I would switch up either public speaking or english 2 to Spring 2015 and switch it out with another class, probably developmental psych since you'll probably want to keep a&p information fresh for micro. It'll keep things from feeling monotonous as opposed to writing and writing plus more writing. :) Unless you're working full time or even more than 25 hours each week (depending on your time management skills) you could probably get english 2 out of the way this fall and finish everything else in the spring. You're not quite at full time and adding english 2 will add 3 credits on top of 8 at most? ... Definitely manageable. That way you'll have a summer free before you start the core courses! (I plan on using my free semesters to study ahead, maybe get my textbooks settled and read through a bit... that's how I get the ADHD to not rear it's ugly little head during the semester.)

School starts on August 19th for me and I'm finishing up my pre reqs (aside from CNA, which will be next semester) with two science classes and a psych class. So to get ahead (also so I can feel more confident in getting A's and working at the same time) I'm writing notes in outline form so I have an easier time making study guides. Unfortunately I have really no idea what my advanced A&P class is going to cover- it's supposed to be mostly physiology but I have a feeling we're going to get into the really in-depth anatomy now, too. So I've been studying the bones and muscles again since those are my weakest points. Developmental psych is going to be easy for me but I want to make sure those three hours lectures once a week aren't going to catch me off guard. Microbiology... well, I'm doing outlines for the whole book just because it's fascinating and it'll make studying easier. I might print the study tools that are online for the book too. (By the way, starting classes the day after the new Doctor Who episode airs?! Lucky!!)

The Wisconsin Technical College System might be a good idea if you're looking for an affordable education. MATC has a good ADN program, but it sounds like you're going to have to take classes again anyway even if you go through B&S, and what are two courses in the long run if you're paying three times as much as something else you can afford? If you're looking for a BSN program, UW Milwaukee might be an option. Alverno College also has a good BSN program and their financial aid office and advisers are usually good about helping students find financial aid options to cover costs (they were for me when I was there, at least). These are the schools I've had experience with at least, hopefully others have more insight on other programs in the area. :)

If biology isn't a required course you would probably be okay with skipping it, especially since you've had kind of an intro to A&P in high school. My school recommended taking bio before A&P, but since it wasn't a requirement for my program I decided to go for it. I hadn't had an actual biology class since freshman year in high school (and I never took A&P in high school, only chemistry and earth sciences) so I was rusty at best and I ended up retaking a couple semesters later to raise my grade from a C+ to a A-.

(Not a nursing student yet but I love reading these and trying to work through all of the thought processes that are posted, it's fun!) Since he's drunk he wouldn't be at risk for withdrawal symptoms, correct? Didn't see anything about a BAC but I first assumed that the strong odor of alcohol means it would be pretty high- but then again, without knowing where the odor is coming from one could assume he's spilled some on his clothing as well. And even if he was having DTs, would the sedation put that concern to rest for now? I'm reading the wiki page (I know, I know- cringe...) and I see that it's treated with benzos- so sedation is treatment for DTs, right?

I use only Chegg or Amazon. Some of the books I've gotten from Chegg have been a bit beaten up or marked up but they're definitely better than paying $150+; in some cases I rented for a tiny fraction of that, or even bought the used text for around the same price as the rental. I've tried a few other sites early in my college career but wasn't happy with their shipping times or the prices. I have always received my books from chegg within five days of ordering. Shipping is really easy, you pick which books you want to send back on the website, they generate a pre-paid shipping label, and you take it to a UPS store. I was even late by a couple of days once and they didn't charge me for not having the books to UPS on time. I didn't even realize it was late until I printed the label- oops! They sent an email and it said something along the lines of since it was the first time I won't be dinged, but to remember to have them back by the due date from now on. I kinda love that company.

I finished an AAS in Health Information Management this past spring. Electronic Medical Records classes are a great way to learn how to do charting, and especially learning about HIPAA laws and other state and federal regulations regarding medical records and patient privacy. An insurance class also helped a lot with understanding how third party payers work and the terminology that is associated with that side of the industry.

I know quite a few people who started out in EMT programs and then gained experience while in nursing school. That would be the route I would choose if I was interested in that kind of career, at least.

I showed my boyfriend that story and this was his first reaction haha. And then there was this...

A&P II (Physiology, mostly) Microbiology Developmental Psych Critical Thinking (Pretty sure this will be a breeze but I'm hoping I'll be surprised ) CNA (Short course, starts in December and ends in the first week of January) Petitioning for a different program this fall to start their nursing core courses in Spring 2015, so I'm trying to finish all of these before starting clinicals. Ugh, I'm so excited but also dreading all of the work that I'm going to have to do on top of trying to pick up shifts at work... I already have all of the books so I am starting to read through those and at least get the gist of all of the required chapters. May as well type up some outlines while I have time this summer, right?

Ah, I apologize! Thank you for correcting me. :)

If I recall correctly losing accreditation means you will not be able to take the NCLEX. I'm not sure if this will affect you if they are accredited again before you graduate, but I think if it sounds like they are on shaky ground at any point you should probably find other options for your degree.

Personally I think I would go for the ABSN since you've already completed one degree already. Doing an ADN would mean that you'd probably do a RN-BSN program at some point anyway, so that will save you time if you just go for the BSN right now. I've been kicking around the idea of trying to switch to a BSN program since my ADN program waitlisted me to start in Spring 2017 (potentially 2016). They're all hard-pressed to find spots for all of the potential nursing students, but I think if it's something you really want to do it's worth the wait to stick it out. Working to save money is also a good idea. Hospitals are almost always looking for registration/patient access spots, which can actually be a really good way to get into a hospital and become acclimated to the environment. Usually the pay grade is lower than CNA positions but you can always slip into a HUC position (about the same, I think) when you get your CNA license. Around here they want some sort of hospital experience with HUC positions though. May as well start with an entry level position. That's my experience at least! :) Aside from that, pharmacy tech positions (if your state doesn't require licensing) are good to get a customer service background... You could look into assisted living communities for anything there, too! Usually dietary doesn't require a CNA license, but occasionally you'll see something about a state license for food preparation.

I swear by the Lily Pulitzer Agendas... I have both the large and small ones, but I'm only seeing the large ones on their site now. Either way, it's simple and for people with big handwriting the lines are perfect on each day, and squares on the month dividers are a good size too! I've tried using my phone and computer (using outlook and google calendars) to organize but it doesn't stick in my head like writing it down does!

I would suggest looking into a Medical Assistant program- one year course usually, fairly easy to get into most of the time, and it would provide a decent background for a tech position like that. :)

Okay, so just for a bit of background... I did an internship with an HIM department this past spring, which included a lot meetings about changing forms that nursing and techs use- something that I had no idea would have such strict rules for changing or merging or removing them from use in health records. If these vitals sheets are entered into the patient record you need to talk to your supervisor before doing your own thing. Some facilities have very strict rules about forms that are included in the patient's legal health record (for good reason). If you're just using them for your own reference and you're transposing it right into the electronic record then it might not be a big deal. I'd recommend to stay on the safe side and check first though.

I would like to point out that the US does not have an official language, unlike most other countries. Including Korea. This is because we, despite some conservative views disputing it, are a "melting pot" of different cultures, as has been disclosed from day one. Cultural identity is strongly linked to language, and even though we live in so-called modern times, our foundations lie on the efforts of many cultures coming together to create what we have today. Remaining ignorant of that fact is doing a disservice to the very core of our own national identity- meaning that within this American identity we are still able to hold on to our cultural identities as we choose. This is one of those "freedom" things, which seems to disappoint some people. But I digress. I agree with others suggesting taking a semester off to immerse in the language and culture. OP, you need to be able to communicate with your patients and if you're staying in Korea I would recommend you get used to everyone not speaking English. I would imagine this is the point of your classes being only in Korean, to figure out if you ARE able to speak and comprehend the language- they surely would not allow nurses to graduate and work in the country without this very basic necessity.

Chances are you'll be asked about any prescriptions before you take the drug test. Honestly, it would be really petty and ridiculous for any of your teachers to say anything about amphetamines being in your system (let alone having a psychiatrist) when you've made it clear you had a prescription- like ridiculous to the point of taking it to the Dean if there are any problems that arise from it. That would be discrimination based on mental illness (or a diagnosis made), which is not legal. They may ask for your doctor to sign a form saying "yeah, so-and-so took vyvanse" but other than that... nah, no one would say or do anything. Schools are used to dealing with these kinds of things. Plus, if they're requesting UA I'm pretty sure you're safe. I just took a drug test and I wasn't flagged for amphetamines, and the last dosage I took was May 28. If you're really worried, you need to talk to your counselor about this! They'll help you more than a forum can. :)

Congrats on the acceptance though!

It took me five years to finally get a degree in something I knew halfway through I really didn't want to do, and I was always comparing myself to others I know who were getting their english and history degrees in four years... it was very frustrating. I also struggled with knowing that I wanted to become a nurse but thinking that I wouldn't be able to. I think graduating last month from the program I didn't like finally gave me that boost in confidence that makes me believe that I can get what I want in life, if I give it my all.

I'm not sure about Indiana... I know in Wisconsin (where I live) there isn't a certification required to work as a tech. There might be one that the pharmacy pays for after so many months of working, but to get a job you don't need one here. (I have an interview for a tech position this afternoon, fingers crossed! :)) You'll have to check out some openings in your area and see if there is a requirement for that.